Thread cleaner



M 9, was J. R. WELTON mm m THREAD CLEANER.

Filed March 26, 1934 Patented July 9, v 193.5

PA ENT orF icEi I l 2.007.723 I THRE CLE NER I i James'R. Welton, Scranton, Pa, I I sppiieatio March 26, 1934,seminarians i 3 Claims. (ores- This inventiqnr; relates to improvements in thread cleaners, and more, particularly toa novel cleaning. plate to be employed withsilk thread cleaners I I II I The. cleaners heretofore proposed usually include a slotted element in the form oi a onepiece 'slitted plate, or separateI opposingjaws type of cleaning plate having separate jaws.

spaced'apart' to provide the slot or clearance through which the thread travels. However,

these types of thread cleaning plates have various disadvantages which; propose to eliminate withmypresent invention. The first type or integral 'slitted' plate" functions properly for. cleaning threads of a certain thickness until the corners formed between the face of the plate and the walls or thesl'ot become rounded or worn frombonstant contact of the thread against the samefand of course, the wallsfof the slot will also" become worn during suchoperation. Consequently, as' the slot widensythe plate must be replac'ed'b'y a new one having "a slotof the proper width," and the discarded plate can be resharpened or reground and used for cleaning threads of greater thickness." Due to the fact that the slot injthis'type of plate will soon become toojbadly worrrfor effective use asya' means of cleaning threads or 'say, the sheerest quality;.it"is evident the'operator must necessarily keepa large'supply of'plateson hand. I I I I The sameobjection isfpresentin thesecohd III this structurei when 'the opposed'walls of the slot between-the two jaws become worn; the slot. is thereby-*widened,- and asa result, the plate will not function to" clean relatively small threadsg Consequently, a new 'set'of jaw members must'be' substituted-in order toprovide" a plate "having a relatively narrow slot. Furthermore, cleaning plates of this type? require special means'dor clamping'the'jaw members in fixed position on the threadjcleaner 'asserribly, without which the jawswould soon becomeldisplaced, due to vibration' oftheinachine during operation. I I

It is therefore theprimary'object of my invention to providea thread cleaning plate comprising I opposed jaw members detachably but rigidly united, whereby said members may be readily disconnected 3 for sharpening "or regrinding, and

then reassembled so as to provide a thread cleaning slot therebetweenof .various predetermined sizes. j

. A further object is to furnish a novel thread cleaner assembly having simple and effective means for detachably connecting one of the thread I In the drawing,

guide supporting means and'the clamping plate in position on the assembly support. 1

With the foregoing objects outlined and-with other objects inview which will appear as the-description proceeds,.the inventioncconsists in the 5- novel features hereinafter described in detail, illustrated in theaccompanying drawing, and more particularly pointed outin' the appended claims.

Fig. 1 is, a side elevation of a/complete assem 10 bly, partly inverticalisection.oi all the elements of my invention, illustratingthe operation :of the cleaner plate. i i

. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal, vertical sectionaliview of one of the thread guides and the cleaning plate 1 attached tothe-supporting bracket.

Fig. 3 isa top plan View, partly in section, the section being taken on the line. 3,3' of Fig; 1.-

Fi 4-is a vertical sectional View taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2. w i

r Fig. 5 is a top plan view of my improved thread cleaning plate. 7, i i j y I i Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view of the plate; taken on the line 6 6 of Fig. 5.

. Referringto the drawing, l0 desi nates aisup port bar to which my improved thread cleaner assembly may besecured. Abracket ll, having. a clamping element orbase I2 is providedfor attaching my device to the bar It; ,and'also for clamping the-thread cleaner'plate l3=in.:posi'- tion. Thebase o-rplate I2 is provided with a'post I l having an aperture '15 to receive a screw l6 which supports alporcelain 1 thread guide I! of known construction. Nuts l8;secure the screw IS in position.

The clamping element or base. I2 has a'groove or channel portion 19' in its under surface, adapted to receive the cleanerplate I3, the rear'end. of which may abutagainst a flange 28 provided at the rear of the clamping base. Pairs of arms 2! having substantially U-shaped slots '22. between them, extend-outwardly from each side wall of the clamping plate and are adapted to receive its outer edge 26b than the inner edge 260 of the rear portion 21, for a purpose hereinafter explained, and the forward edges 26d of the jaws 24, 25 converge to facilitate the introduction of the thread into the clearance space 28 between the inner edges of the front portions of the jaws. In assembling the jaws 24, 25 to form my improved thread cleaner plate, I preferably solder or weld the rear portions 21 together as shown at 21a so as to provide a slot 28 of the desired width. In other words, if a thread of a certain thickness is to be cleaned with my device, only enough solder or welding material will be employed in joining the jaws to provide a slot 28 of a size sufllcient to accommodate such thread.

Of course, as the slot widens due to constant contact of the thread against the opposed walls of the slot, the operator or a machinist in the work shop may remove the metal 21a between the jaws, regrind the edges 26a, and reassemble the elements in the manner above described, but in this instance, owing to the fact that a certain amount of material has been removed from the walls of the slot by grinding, the operator or machinist will use less solder or welding metal in joining the jaws, in order to bring the edges 26c closer together and provide a slot 28 of the same width as that used in the beginning.

In making up the elements 24, 25, I prefer to bevel the upper and lower portions of the edges 26c, as shown at 29 in Fig. 6, in order to provide for additional adhesive material such as solder or the like between said jaws, without varying the distance between the edges 260.

After my improved cleaning plate has been manufactured in the manner above described, the operator can insert its rear end into the channel l9, and by tightening the screws 23 into the support Hi, the clamping plate, as well as the cleaner plate will both be firmly held on the support. Of course, in order to remove the cleaner plate for regrinding and readjustment of the slot 28', it is simply necessary to loosen the screws 23 and pull the plate out. As cleaner plates of this character are usually made ofthe same thickness, I preferably provide the channel I! of less depth than the thickness of the plate so that the plate may be firmly and securely held in position when the screws or the like are screwed into the support.

To complete the assembly of my improved thread cleaner, I may, if desired, provide a sec ond porcelain thread guide 30 having a screw 3| adapted to engage an aperture 32 in a bracket 33. This bracket may be suitably secured to the under surface of the support In by screws or the like, not shown.

In the operation of my device, the thread 34 is cleaned during its passage from one bobbin or quill 35 to the other. On leaving one of the bobbins, the thread passes through one of the thread guides, through the slot 28 in the cleaner plate, and through the second guide to the other bobbin. As the thread passes through the slot of the cleaner plate, any defective material, such as loose fuzz or excess wax, gum or oil will be scraped off until it causes the thread to break, when the operator will remove the defective material, tie the clean ends together and continue the winding operation. The sharp corners of the slot 28 eliminate any tendency of the defective materials to squeeze into the slot, and the cleaning operation is positive. The material rubbed off the thread, due to the back and forth movement of the thread in unwinding from the bobbin, will cause the material removed from the thread to feed toward the cleaning notch 36 provided in the cleaner plate intermediate the front and rear portions of the latter.

As the edges of the slot become worn or rounded, the cleaner plate may be removed and the walls or edges 26a of the slot sharpened or reground. The solder between the rear portions of the jaws may also be removed, and a less amount substituted therefor to provide a slot between the inner edges 26a. of the front portions of the same width as the one originally formed therebetween. The cleaning plate may then be reinserted in the channel of the clamping plate or base, and the thread cleaning operation continued without the necessity of employing a new cleaner plate and discarding the old one.

While I have disclosed what I now consider to be a preferred embodiment of my invention in such manner that the same may be readily understood, I am aware that changes may be made in the details disclosed, without departing from the spirit of the invention, as expressed in the claims.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A cleaner plate of the character described, including a. pair of opposed elements, each element having a front and rear portion, the inner edge of said front portion of each element extending inwardly beyond the plane of the inner edge of the rear portion of that element, and fusible metal means connecting the rear portions of the two elements, said last mentioned means being arranged between the inner edges of the rear portions of said elements, and the front portions of said elements being spaced apart to form a slot therebetween.

2. A cleaner plate of the character described, including a pair of opposed elements, each element having a front and rear portion, the inner edge of said front portion of each element extending inwardly beyond the plane of the inner edge of the rear portion of that element, and fusible metal means connecting the rear portions of the two elements, said last mentioned means being arranged between the inner edges of the rear portions of said elements, and the front portions of said elements being spaced apart to form a slot therebetween, the upper and lower portions of the inner edges of said rear portions being beveled.

3. A cleaner plate of the character described, including a pair of opposed elements, the inner edges of said elements having offset front and rear portions, the inner edge of the front portion of each element extending inwardly beyond the plane of the inner edge of the rear portion of that element, and fusible metal means integrally uniting the rear portions of the two elements, said last mentioned means being removably arranged between the inner edges of the rear portions of the two elements, the front portions of said elements being spaced apart to form a slot therebetween.

JAMES R. WELTON. 

